


Too Ra Loo

by jackabelle73



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Rumbelle is Hope
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-16
Updated: 2016-05-16
Packaged: 2018-06-08 22:15:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6875932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jackabelle73/pseuds/jackabelle73
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Short, fluffy fic providing a glimpse into a happy future for the Gold family. Written for the Rumbelle is Hope writing challenge over on Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Too Ra Loo

He stopped by the front door to check the lock before passing through the living room, where a book lay open on the coffee table and a knitted afghan draped messily over the back of the sofa. The floor was strewn with various soft, brightly colored objects that they hadn’t bothered to pick up, but that chore could wait till tomorrow. He had somewhere else to be and more important things to do.

The stairs were easy now, but he never climbed them without remembering how he used to take one step at a time, placing his cane carefully on the next step to help his balance. He was grateful to have two healthy legs now, for safely carrying precious cargo.

He followed the sound of humming to the sitting room attached to their bedroom, and leaned in the doorway for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light.

He could live longer than any Dark One before him, and still never tire of the sight of Belle, rocking gently as she hummed to the baby at her breast. Her eyes were closed, her whole body slumped a little with the never-ending exhaustion of a new mother, but even half-asleep, she turned toward her daughter and one thumb stroked the little foot inside the blanket.

She must have sensed him, for she opened her eyes and gave him that contented smile that she’d worn so often for the past three months, since their daughter had first been placed in her arms. Motherhood came so naturally to Belle, as he’d suspected all along it would. His first experience with parenting had been with a wife who resented every moment spent nursing and caring for their child. It was an indescribable relief to him that Belle clearly enjoyed being a mother.

She looked away from him only when the little girl kicked a leg within her tight swaddle. Belle ran her fingertips gently over their baby’s head, resuming her lullaby.

_Too ra loo ra loo la_

_Too ra loo ra li_

_Too ra loo ra loo la_

_Hush now, don’t you cry._

The infant ceased her kicking, turning in to her mother’s body and refocusing her hungry attention on her meal.

Belle looked up at him again, and held out one hand. He went to her at once—he would always go to her—and took her hand, leaning down to kiss her briefly before looking at their baby.

He’d been told all the usual wisdom about how the baby’s eye color wouldn’t settle for a while yet, but since birth she’d had Belle’s bright blue eyes, and he refused to believe they would change. He could see who she’d be in a few years, a smaller version of the woman he loved, and he couldn’t wait to fill the house with pictures of them, side-by-side.

He knelt by the rocker to be closer, and ran one finger, feather soft, over their baby’s cheek, feeling the motion as she sucked. Belle smiled down at them both, then let her head fall back against the chair, still humming. She opened her eyes again only when he moved his stroking finger from the baby’s cheek to her breast, rubbing back and forth next to their baby’s mouth. With her free hand she feathered her fingers through the hair just over his ear, then rubbed lightly at the base of his skull. He closed his eyes, to better enjoy her touch, and to freeze this moment for just a few seconds longer.

“She’s been on this side for a while,” Belle said, soft as a snowfall in the room. “I think she’s almost done.”

Sure enough, the baby’s mouth was falling slack around the nipple she’d been so busily sucking on a moment before, and her small body in the blanket was relaxing into that boneless state that meant she was well and truly asleep.

He held his hands out for her, lifting the bundle to his shoulder and patting her back as Belle rearranged her clothing and stretched her arms overhead with a smile. A soft burp came from the direction of his shoulder and he turned toward the crib, easing his daughter down into the crook of his arm. He breathed in her scent as he kissed her forehead. She smelled of breast milk and baby shampoo and untainted new life, her entire being radiating hope and possibility. He still had trouble believing that he’d had any part in creating her. How had such a beautiful and innocent creature resulted from the dark life he’d led?

“Goodnight, sweetest and most precious girl in all the realms.” He’d said those words to her the night she was born, as Belle slept off the effort of labor and delivery in the bed, and he sat next to her, holding their child all night. He’d refused to let the hospital staff take her to the nursery. Had he been anyone else, he suspected they would have pressed their case. But no one was brave enough to take the Dark One’s child from his arms after he said quite plainly that he’d never let her go.

Belle’s hand slipped around his waist, and she rested her head on his arm, whispering to him when he didn’t look up.

“You have to set her down eventually, Rumple. We’ve talked about this.”

“I could just hold her all night,” he countered.

A soft chuckle and a gentle squeeze was his only answer for a moment, before she answered. “But then how will she learn to sleep on her own?”

He straightened up, turning to face her and make his argument.

“But--” Two fingers laid over his lips immediately, as if she’d been ready.

“And how will you take me to bed, if you’re holding her all night?”

Any words he’d been about to say, faded into nothingness when he saw the unmistakable invitation in her eyes. So he kissed the fingertips still against his lips, till she stood on her toes and pulled his head down for a proper kiss.

“You’re not too tired?” he asked in a murmur when she eased back down on her heels, keeping one hand behind his head to hold him close.  

“I might be persuaded to stay awake…if you make it worth my while.” She rested her forehead against his, so close that he could feel the warmth of her breath.

“You’re the only girl in the world who could possibly pull me away from this one.”

She only smiled and leaned over to bestow her own kiss on the tiny snub nose, while the baby slept on, oblivious.

“Goodnight, sweet one. We’ll see you for your next feeding.” 

Carefully, Rumplestiltskin laid the precious bundle in the center of the crib, stroking her hair one last time before standing upright and turning to his wife. The dim illumination from the nightlights were barely sufficient to make out her features, but he could see her hair falling down from the messy bun she’d tied it up in, the lines of tiredness on her face and her normally neat clothing a little askew. He held her cheek with one hand to give her a brief kiss before saying, “You’ve never looked more beautiful to me than you do right now.”

Her only answer was a heartfelt smile and a kiss to the hand that cupped her face.

“How long do you think we have?” he asked.

“If we’re lucky, a couple hours.” She took his hand in hers, lowering it as she laced their fingers, and walked backwards toward their bedroom, never breaking eye contact. “Let’s not waste it.”


End file.
